gribble

American  

[grib-uhl] / ˈgrɪb əl /

noun

1. a small, marine isopod crustacean of the genus Limnoria that destroys submerged timber by boring into it.

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gribble British  

/ ˈɡrɪbəl /

noun

1. any small marine isopod crustacean of the genus Limnoria, which bores into and damages wharves and other submerged wooden structures

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Etymology

Origin of gribble

First recorded in 1830–40; perhaps akin to grub

Example Sentences

This means that the gribble — unlike the termite, which uses its intestinal bacteria to digest wood — must be able to secrete the enzymes needed to convert the wood into its constituent sugars.

From Nature • Jun. 22, 2011

At the University of York in the United Kingdom, plant cell-wall biologist Simon McQueen-Mason is investigating the marine wood borer Limnoria quadripunctata, also known as the gribble.

From Nature • Jun. 22, 2011

Noise characters in a data stream are displayed as gribble.

From The Jargon File, Version 4.2.2, 20 Aug 2000 by Steele, Guy L.